2021 PLAYWRITING COMPETITION
Austin Film Festival
DEADLINE / FEE: May 21, 2021 ($30)
INFO: At Austin Film Festival, our mission is to champion all writers across mediums. Our Playwriting Competition (open to full-length plays) gives playwrights a chance to explore our film and television conference. It will also allow film professionals to discover storytellers who have mastered the art and craft of stage drama.
AFF has always promoted story as the most important element of film and TV. So giving playwrights their own story exposure and a chance of crossover into film and TV only advances our mission. There are many other playwriting competitions out there, but AFF offers playwrights broader access to successful writers and professionals in all the other related fields.
Plays that make the Final Round will have readings during the Conference. Advancing playwrights will have access to exclusive panels, workshops, roundtables, and unique networking opportunities with professionals in theatre, film, and television.
AFF understands the relationship between passion and writing. That’s why we have enormous respect for the many successful playwrights who made the seamless transition to film and TV – playwrights such as Tennessee Williams, Horton Foote, John Patrick Shanley, Tony Kushner and Beau Willimon. And that list grows exponentially with today’s widening viewer market.
General Eligibility:
All plays submitted must be in English.
The play must not have been optioned, sold, had a professional production, or be scheduled to have a professional production prior to October 23, 2021. A “professional production” is defined as a staged production where the playwrights involved were or will be compensated for their intellectual property or work. Applicants must notify Austin Film Festival (“AFF” or the “Festival”) of any changes in status following submission.
Applicants may submit more than one play.
All submissions must be accompanied by the appropriate submission fee PER ENTRY and if submitting by mail, a completed entry form including authors’ original signatures. Please do not send a photocopy of your signature. Make checks or money orders payable to “Austin Film Festival.” Only US money orders will be accepted.
AFF reserves the right in its sole discretion to reject or disqualify any ineligible entries, without a refund.
Full-length plays, original or adapted, will be accepted. One-act plays, musicals, and screenplays will not be considered.
Only complete applications will be accepted.
https://austinfilmfestival.com/submit/play/
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WRITER MEMBERSHIP
The New Work Playhouse
DEADLINE: N/A
INFO: Here at The New Works Playhouse, we’re committed to investing our expertise and resources in order to build a community of skilled performers and gifted writers and provide a platform that can encourage and inspire new talent.
WHAT WE DO: Performers can apply to The New Works Playhouse to be on our books. Through a successful application, our performer members receive casting notices for written work successfully submitted by prospective writers. Once writers are matched with performers, tickets for an online table reads will be available through our website on a pay-what-you-can basis. Successful read-throughs may lead to digital productions and/or a live performance of their work.
What makes us unique is that we are not constrained to a resident theatre and that our base is fully online. This allows us to be truly global in both our digital and live productions. A theatre based online also allows us to work without the constraints of having one physical space, allowing for multiple productions to be performed at the same time.
To ensure that we are able to continue supporting talented performers and writers, we have an application process followed by an audition for prospective performers and interviews for prospective writers. However, please do not feel anxious about the process - just show us what you can do. No application fee or subsequent membership fee will be charged to our members. We want to make sure that this platform is accessible to everyone and not burdened by any financial constraints.
As we are a community of performers and writers striving to support each other, all performances are "sold" on a pay-what-you-can basis. 50% of the total funds earnt through any table reads, productions, or any other event hosted by us will be equally split between the participating writers and performers for each event, whilst the remaining 50% will be reinvested into future projects with The New Works Playhouse.
The first step is to fill out our online application form to register your interest.
Please prepare a CV and a document which includes a brief synopsis followed by one scene from the work you wish to submit. You will need to upload both files in a PDF format at the end of the application form.
You must be at least the legal age of adulthood in the country you currently reside in.
ONLINE INTERVIEW:
If your initial application is successful, you will be invited to submit your written work followed by an online interview.
Please make sure that your written work is formatted well and in a PDF format.
The interview will focus on discussing your submitted work and your future intentions with the piece.
JOIN OUR COMMUNITY:
If your online interview is successful, we will proceed with an online table read.
You will be matched with a cast from the performers from within our membership. An event will be made and sold on a pay-what-you-can basis through our website so that your written work may also have an audience to facilitate a discussion and receive feedback.
Following a successful table read, there will be further opportunities to develop your written work into a digital production, rehearsed reading, and/or live production.
50% of funds raised from tickets through an event from your written piece will be split equally between yourself and the other individuals involved. The remaining 50% will be reinvested into future projects and productions.
A mentor from The New Works Playhouse may be assigned to your script. All this means is that the mentor will be your first point of call should you need any support.
Member writers are expected to have a hands-on approach in the development and direction of approved scripts into a table read event and digital/live productions. This includes being present at rehearsals, directing table reads, and taking an active role in the development of productions. If support is required, please ensure you mention this in your initial application and interview.
To ensure that all of our performer members are provided with a fair opportunity to take part in our events, auditions will not be required for a table read event. Preferences for performers may also not be considered.
If a script is brought to a digital or live production, you will have an opportunity to audition our performer members to ensure you have the appropriate cast for your production.
The application process and successful membership as a writer are both free of charge.
Successful membership to The New Works Playhouse does not equate to employment.
https://www.thenewworksplayhouse.org/writers
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Native Voices: Call for Short plays
Autry Museum of the American West
DEADLINE: June 7, 2021
INFO: *Please note that we only accept submissions written for the stage or theatre by American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and First Nations artists.
For the 11th Annual Short Play Festival, Native Voices wants to know What is Home? For so many around the world this past year, “Home” – literal or metaphorical – has become the centerpiece of many of our lives.
What is Home? Is it a structure? Is it where you are? Or where you come from? Is it the communities in which you surround yourself, or the communities that shaped you?
At Native Voices, we understand and appreciate all the complexities that make up your “home”. Is “home” your ancestral lands? Does it live in the hearts and minds of your communities? Does it live with your Aunties and cousins? Or maybe, is “home” your studio apartment or your suitcase? Has your notion of ‘home” changed in the past year? We want to know: What’s your story? What is your home?
We want to hear from you! Share with us a glimpse of home. The only limitation is that your play must be no longer than 10-minutes. For ten minutes, you can take the audience on any journey you want. We cannot wait to see what you bring to life!
Plays chosen to participate in the 11th Annual Short Play Festival will also be entered to win the Von Marie Atchley Excellence in Playwriting award – a $1,000 cash prize!!
Scripts longer than 15 pages or read aloud at longer than 10 minutes will not be accepted. Fresh, surprising perspectives are welcome, and unique theatricality is a must.
Some ideas to spark the imagination are:
Sovereignty
Traditional Homelands
Language Keepers
Passing On Traditions
Family
Friends
Diaspora/ Removals
Urban/ Rural/ Reservation/ Village
Coming Home/ Leaving Home
Homesickness
Boarding schools and assimilation
Protecting Home/ Environment
https://theautry.org/events/signature-programs/native-voices-annual-call-for-scripts
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Emerging Playwrights Fund
Audible
DEADLINE: Rolling
INFO: In 2017, Audible launched a theater initiative, intended to radically increase access to exceptional plays and performances. A core pillar of the initiative is the Emerging Playwrights Fund, a program that invests in and nurtures self-identifying emerging playwrights, some of our most inventive, delightful, and provocative storytellers. Through the Fund, Audible aims to connect extraordinary performers with remarkable original work, amplifying new voices and harnessing the power and potential of audio to reach millions of listeners.
The Fund specifically supports the creation of original dramatic work, written with audio in mind, but theatrical in spirit.
Audible is dedicated to commissioning, developing, and producing work that reflects the diversity of our members and our world. To accomplish this, Audible is committed to granting at least 50% of emerging playwright commissions to artists of color and women.
GUIDELINES:
To be considered as an applicant for a commission, please submit all of the following to AudibleTheater@audible.com:
1. One full-length script for an original or adapted play (in English language only) that represents your voice ("Script"). The Script can be in any genre and may include one-acts and solo pieces;
2. A short biography; and
3. A brief statement about why audio plays appeal to you.
If you have an idea for an original audio play, you are welcome to include a pitch or summary along with your statement (this is encouraged, but not required).
ELIGIBILITY:
Any applicant over the age of 18 may submit a Script. Employees or independent contractors, or immediate family members (spouses, domestic partners, parents, grandparents, siblings, children, and grandchildren) or those living in the same household of employees or independent contractors of Audible Inc., Amazon or any entity involved in any aspect of the Theater Fund may not submit a Script for consideration, unless it is determined by Audible in its sole discretion in accordance with Audible’s then current policies and procedures that no conflict of interest exists in connection with accepting the relevant submission for consideration.
TIMELINE:
Submissions are accepted year-round. Due to the number of Scripts that Audible receives, Audible will only consider one Script at a time from each applicant and will not consider resubmissions, including those that have been significantly revised. The Audible team evaluates submissions on a rolling basis, and applicants will be notified regarding the status of their submissions via email. Thanks in advance for your patience while we process your Script; our typical response time is 6-8 months.
CONDITIONS:
All submissions must be the original creations of the applicants. By submitting a Script, each applicant represents and warrants that: (a) the submitted work is his/her 100% original creation, (b) the submitted work will not violate or infringe the rights (including copyrights and rights of privacy and publicity) of any other person or party, and (c) all materials and elements comprising the submitted work are exclusively owned or controlled by the applicant. Audible may determine, in its sole discretion, that an applicant is ineligible to submit a work for consideration if these requirements, and others described in these Guidelines, are not satisfied to Audible’s satisfaction.
Applicants understand and acknowledge that (i) Audible is in the business of developing and distributing content, (ii) Audible receives numerous submissions (both from outside and from within Audible) of content ideas and creative materials, (iii) Audible is continually developing ideas, formats, shows, stories, concepts, artwork, music, and the like, and (iv) content developed or distributed by Audible may resemble, be similar to, or contain identical material or elements found in works submitted to Audible for consideration. By submitting a project via this program, each applicant understands and agrees that Audible is not prohibited or restricted from developing or distributing content that may contain elements similar or identical to an applicant’s submission, and Audible will not be obligated to any applicant in any manner if such similar or identical elements were developed or obtained by Audible either independently or from sources other than the applicant’s submitted work.